🍷 Trocken
A German label term meaning dry wine.
Trocken is a German label term meaning dry. It is used in Germany and Austria, and its meaning is set by common EU rules for sweetness terms.
A wine counts as dry if it has no more than 4 grams of sugar per litre. Up to 9 grams is allowed if the acidity is almost as high, with no more than 2 grams difference between sugar and acid. Acidity makes the taste fresh, so a little sweetness is hardly noticed. That is why a trocken Riesling can taste very dry even with a few grams of sugar.
The next step up in sweetness is halbtrocken, or off-dry. The top dry wines of the German VDP association from selected sites are called Grosses Gewächs, and they are all trocken. In Austria trocken is also common on dry Grüner Veltliner and Riesling. The word helps you read the style of a wine quickly on a German label.
Links
- Part of
- 🍷 Dry wine
- Where it is made
- 🗺️ German wine, 🗺️ Austrian wine
- Similar and different
- 🍷 Dry wine, 🍷 Halbtrocken, 🏷️ Grosses Gewächs
Frequently asked questions
What does trocken mean on a wine label?
It means dry: no more than 4 g/l of sugar, or up to 9 g/l when acidity is high.
What is the difference between trocken and halbtrocken?
Halbtrocken is off-dry, with more sugar, usually up to 12 g/l or a little more with high acidity.
Is trocken used in Austria?
Yes, Austrian wines use it too, because EU sweetness rules are shared.
Similar
🍷 Feinherb · 🍷 Lieblich · 🍷 Süß · 🍷 Perlwein · 🍷 Halbtrocken · 🍷 Biodynamic wine
⚠️ Wine contains alcohol: adults only, drink in moderation. Wine usually contains sulphites; egg white or milk proteins are sometimes used for fining — important for allergies and for vegans.
Sources
- Wikipedia (en)
- EU Delegated Regulation 2019/33 (labelling, sugar terms)
- Encyclopaedia Britannica: Wine
- Deutsches Weininstitut
- Austrian Wine Marketing Board